Again what I said -- it that's the intent, simpler to take the wire and
bend it w/o the hanger itself. Of course, it assumes it's mounted in
the chuck and up to the point at which the bend occurs is straight and
perpendicular, otherwise it rotates around a non-vertical axis...
--

It's the same procedure as leveling the table on an RAS to the blade. You
can use a coat hanger, a dowel, anything that gives you a reference height.
He's assuming you have a radial drill press or a table that moves laterally
and in and out I think.

No, he's not. Bend the wire like a Z. Put one end in the chuck. Bring the
table up (or the quill down) until the free end of the wire comes close to
touching the table and turn the spindle by hand. Keep creeping down until
the end of the wire touches the table all the way around as you turn the
spindle. The further the end of the wire is from the spindle centerline, the
more accurate it will be.

The point won't perfectly unless the vertical portion extended from the
chuck is also aligned in that same axis. If there's any bend in it it
will simply amplify that and you'd adjust the table to match.

The objective is to have the table perpendicular to the quill, not to have
either of them exactly vertical.
If the quill is bent, it needs to be straightened and until that is done
there is no point in trying to align the table.

The point isn't the quill itself bent, it's finding a piece of hanger
wire that isn't... :)
Whatever error there is in it is amplified by the radius or rotation...
The idea is ok, it's the implementation that has to be good to get it to
work in practice....

Indeed, which is what I've said... :)
_IF_ that circle is rotating slightly off-axis, the length of the wire
to the point amplifies that and you align the table to it...
It relies for accuracy on the axis of rotation being colinear w/ the
quill precisely...

Machinists have been doing it this way for at least 150 years. I, myself,
have done it hundreds of times (yes, I am a machinist).
It doesn't even matter if the chuck or spindle is bent, this method will get
the table perpendicular to the spindles axis of rotation.

The idea is to sweep a circle having a common center point and length.
If it grases the surface in a circle - turning by hand - if it digs in -
that side is high....
It is simply a single rod that is bent off center to sweep a circle.
Martin
dpb wrote:

Very entertaining thread! Thanks guys. With all the stress and
anxiety these days, I really appreciate a good laugh every now and
then.
Yep, all you need to do is bend up a wire coat-hanger and sweep the
drill press table with it's tip. Keeping in mind that it's going to
be all springy and bouncy, if you're good at making such subjective
"hear the scrape" judgments, then you can get adequate results.
Primitive, but feasible. Not much different from the goofy idea of
holding a square up against a drill bit.
Honestly, I can't understand why people go to such extremes to avoid
dial indicators. It reminds me of the guy who says "I don't need to
know how to read; I learn all I need to know by watching TV and
listening to the radio." The excuses for some people's aversion to
dial indicators often sounds just like the ignorant excuses that
illiterate people use to justify their situation. They put themselves
thorough all sorts of absurd and convoluted procedures so that they
can cope in a world where everyone else can read. A bent up coat
hanger? Geez! Cough up the $10-$15 for a dial indicator and learn
some useful skills.
<shameless_plug>
You'll find all you need to know about using dial indicators on your
table saw at:
http://www.tablesawalignment.com
Sign up today!
</shameless_plug>
I completely understand some people's reaction to most dial indicator
jigs on the market today. Heck, the vast majority do nothing more
than a simple dial indicator on a stick. Some do even less! It
amazes me what some people sell, but it amazes me even more that
people buy it.
Thanks,
Ed Bennett
snipped-for-privacy@ts-aligner.com

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